


Still Here

by Lilypetal347



Category: Mario Story | Paper Mario, Paper Mario: The Origami King, Super Mario & Related Fandoms
Genre: (are there no tags for origami king yet?), Angst, Gen, Grief/Mourning, How Do I Tag, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Past Character Death, Some Fluff, Spoilers, Tags Contain Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-04
Updated: 2020-09-04
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:20:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26284063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lilypetal347/pseuds/Lilypetal347
Summary: After going through some rough times, Mario and Olivia decide to make a pit stop at Shogun Studios. However, fate isn’t done throwing the two heroes some curve balls.*Major spoilers for the beginning of the yellow streamer*
Relationships: Mario & Olivia
Comments: 13
Kudos: 48





	Still Here

**Author's Note:**

> Is it just me, or are there almost no fanfics for Origami King? It’s been some time since the game released, and there’s still not a lot I’ve been able to find. Did that many writers just not like the game?
> 
> Well, anyways, I’m going to be part of the change I want to see! Starting with expanding upon an interesting easter egg if you go take photos in Shogun Studios after... y’know...

After defeating the origami invaders of Shogun Studios, the theme park was much more cheery and lively. Both employees and tourists thanked Mario once again for saving all of them as the hero walked in for another short visit. He smiled and waved off the praise, taking in the beautiful sights.

Shogun Studios...The last time they were here, they… 

…still had three members in their party… 

Mario pushed the dark thought away. Instead, he focused on why they were here; just as he and Olivia entered the Scorching Sandpaper Desert, he realized that he was running low on supplies. Not wanting to take any chances with whatever they would face ahead, Mario used the newly freed warp pipe to go back and buy more supplies from a previous town.

To his surprise, Olivia popped out of his pocket by herself and gazed around at the studio, a sad smile on her face. “It’s so much nicer here without all those folded soldiers running around. I wish Bobby could be here to see this with us…”

Mario gave her a small smile in return, nodding. Olivia seemed to be doing better, which was good news. Using that goomba mask to give her a good laugh really did wonders, allowing her to move forward despite the grief she still felt.

Olivia folded back into his pocket, and he walked over to the nearby items store. The shopkeeper toad greeted him kindly as he walked in. Mario politely waved to the toad and began to grab some items and gear.

As the toad rang up his purchases, Mario twiddled his thumbs and glanced around. It felt like ages since they were last here, but it was really only a mere few hours ago, if that. So much could happen in so little time…

“Oh, hey!” The shopkeeper spoke up suddenly, jolting Mario out of his thoughts. “I think the photo studio got back into operation after you left, Mario. Why don’t you go check it out?”

Mario paused, thinking. That could be a good thing to do for a fun little distraction. He thanked the shopkeeper for the information and paid for the wares. Walking out of the store, the plumber stopped to call out Olivia. 

As she popped out, Olivia’s eyes were bright in childlike interest. Mario couldn’t help but chuckle silently at the sight. “Wow, a photo studio,” the origami girl breathed. “I’ve never actually had my picture taken before! This is so exciting!”

Olivia danced in the air, clearly happy with the idea, but she suddenly paused to look at Mario with an unsure gaze. “But, um, are you okay with it? We still have a long journey ahead of us, and we’re only done with two of the streamers…”

Mario glanced away in thought for only a moment before smiling at his friend. He placed a hand on Olivia’s head, causing her to look up at him curiously. Grinning mischievously, Mario playfully ruffled her paper headwear a bit, to the girl’s surprise. Once he pulled his hand away, the origami princess adjusted her paper with a huff, lightly glaring at him. The red clad hero simply grinned back before giving her a laidback thumbs-up in approval of the detour.

Olivia gazed down, processing. After some thought, she looked back at Mario with a smile of her own. “Yeah, you’re right. If an experienced adventurer like yourself thinks that it’s fine, then I should probably listen. I guess I just...felt bad that I slowed us down earlier when…” 

The young princess trailed off, eyes gaining a somber glint. Mario winced at the sight, feeling a pang in his heart. Before he could say anything, Olivia shook her head and cleared her throat. “...A-Anyways, I agree. We both could use a break, especially you, Mario. Let’s check it out!”

Mario nodded with a sympathetic smile, deciding to not start a discussion of what transpired not long ago. He thought that they deserved a rest from the trials and tribulations of life.

With that, the two travelers made their way down the theme park’s streets.

* * *

Mario slid open the wooden door and stepped inside the photo studio. He waved to the ordinary toad in the corner who he had saved on his first visit as he walked up to the new toad wearing a ninja costume. The employee toad smiled politely at him. “Welcome to the Dress-Up Photo Studio! Would you like a photo to remember your fun day here?”

The red clad hero nodded, and he began to search his overalls for some coins to pay. During his search, he ended up holding his Royalty Pass for the park. The toad’s eyes widened. “Oh! You bought the Royalty Pass!” He bowed quickly in a well practiced manner. “Thank you for your patronage, sir! I shall waive the fee of 500 gold bits.”

Mario smirked, glad that Olivia convinced him to buy the premium pass. As he put the card away, the employee toad led him over to a rack of costumes. “Please, choose any outfit.”

The plumber perused the outfits with a hand to his chin, humming in thought. Olivia came out of his pocket and floated over to the rack, brushing a few kimonos with a delicate hand. “Ooh, these all look so nice! I don’t know if I can choose! What do you think, Mario?”

Mario shrugged, content to use any of the costumes. As a result, the two stood there for awhile, at an impasse. When no choice had been made for several minutes, the employee stepped in. “Well, the Royalty Pass allows you to take as many photos as you’d like without having to pay, so why don’t you try using all of the outfits?”

Olivia’s eyes widened, and she gasped excitedly. “That’s a great idea, mister!” She turned to her companion with a bright smile. “Mario, is that fine with you?”

The red clad hero nodded, grinning. With a small cheer, Olivia dived right back into the clothing rack, grabbing a pink ninja costume. “Alright! How about we start by being ninjas? Just give me a second to fold myself into this suit!”

Mario shook his head in amusement at his friend’s antics. As Olivia refolded into her outfit, he turned to the rack and pulled out a black ninja costume for himself. Counting the other clothes hung up, he could see about three other outfit themes. And they were going to take pictures with all of them.

Well, looks like they might be here for awhile.

* * *

After one long photo shoot, Mario slipped out of the last outfit. Pulling off the glamorous royalty garb, the hero gladly put his humble plumber attire back on. Nearby, a normally folded Olivia waited in anticipation for their photos to be ready.

“You know, Mario?” Olivia started, catching his attention. “I’m really glad that we came here. This was so much fun! Thank you for suggesting it!” 

Mario simply smiled and waved her thanks off with a “no problem” gesture.

At last, the photographer toad walked over to them. They stood up, ready to see their photos, but something seemed to be wrong. The toad looked confused, and his eyebrows were furrowed in a strange way. The red clad hero tilted his head, trying to identify the look. Haunted?

Mario raised an questioning eyebrow at the toad. Even the excited Olivia cooled down, floating over to the employee in concern. “Is everything alright, sir?”

The photographer blinked before looking back up at them with a frown. “Well, um, the photos came out great. I hung them on the back wall. But…” The toad scratched the back of his head. “In the photos… There was something… _weird_.”

The origami princess tilted her head. “‘Something weird?’ What was it?”

The toad gestured for them to follow him. “I think you should see for yourself.”

Mario and Olivia exchanged confused glances before complying. They walked over to the back wall where a line of their photos were displayed in frames. The toad stopped next to them and pointed at the pictures. “Look at any picture. It’s in all of them.”

The red clad hero frowned, puzzled, but proceeded to inspect the first photo he saw. He glanced over the printed image…

  
And froze in shock.

Mario rubbed his eyes, thinking it was a trick of the light. But when he continued to see the same thing and heard Olivia’s choked gasp beside him, Mario realized that it wasn’t just him.

It was impossible. At least, it _should_ have been. The sheer unbelievability of the image in front of them left the two friends speechless.

Because standing to the right of Mario in the photo, was _Bobby_.

Mario blinked, mouth gaping. Bobby was _in the picture_ with them! The bo-bomb was surrounded by a ghostly blue hue and wore the fuse he used to… save Olivia. So… when he saw Bobby’s ghost in the wreckage of the boulder… That was real?

As Mario struggled to understand what he was seeing, Olivia finally managed to squeak out a word. “ _B-Bobby?_ ” She stuttered, tears welling in her eyes.

Mario stared at the photo a bit longer, and then he spun around to look for their departed friend. Of course, nobody else was there: just him, Olivia, and the two other toads. Mario turned to look at the photographer standing nearby, who cleared his throat and glanced between him and Olivia in confusion and concern. “Um, is everything alright?”

The plumber couldn’t quite find a way to explain, so he instead turned back to his friend. The origami girl had floated closer to the photo, holding a shaky hand up to the glass as if to confirm whether what she was seeing was real. Mario stepped over to Olivia and nudged her lightly. The contact seemed to be enough to snap her out of her trance just a little. 

“…How?” Olivia whispered. “He… H-He’s gone...”

Mario gazed down at his boots, trying to think of what to do. Had he actually seen Bobby’s ghost earlier? Would letting Olivia know that _help_ at all? Despite already knowing that information, Mario _still_ couldn’t wrap his head around this…

All of a sudden, the red clad hero was pulled into a recent memory:

_Just outside the Shogun Studios’ entrance, the three of them were standing on the small dock. They were all shocked and ecstatic to hear that Bobby had finally regained his lost memories. Olivia was dancing in excitement, and even Mario had a soft grin on his face. In front of them, Bobby himself gazed up at his friends, looking happy… yet somber?_

_“Big M… Olivia… Thank you for taking care of me. I’ll NEVER forget you. That's a promise,” Bobby broke eye contact. Mario’s stomach dropped slightly, eyebrows raising._

_“Good luck on your journey. I… I hope you both-“_

_Bobby’s voice cut off there, but even if he hadn’t, Olivia was rather quick at processing the implications of his words. The origami princess paused mid-dance, stunned, before fixing Bobby with a frantic, worried stare._

_“What are you saying, Bobby?!” She exclaimed, waving her arms. “You really think we have to part ways just because you got your old memories back?! We still have to take down the rest of the streamers, stop my brother, and save Peach’s castle...”_

_Olivia floated closer to Bobby, giving him a meaningful look. “You’re a part of this team! So stop saying goodbye and get on the boat already!”_

_The bob-omb’s eyes widened, and he turned away from them, sniffling. “Aw, shucks…” Bobby swallowed harshly, attempting to save face. “Don't make me cry, you two! Bob-ombs aren’t supposed to get wet. Heh.”_

_With one last sniff, Bobby turned back to his awaiting friends, somehow managing a watery smile despite not having a mouth._

_“Thank you. Thank you so much! I’m by your side to the very end. That’s a promise!”_

Mario winced. _“By your side to the very end.”_ That’s what Bobby had said, what Bobby had promised. The red clad hero hadn’t thought much of it at the time, but it seemed like _Bobby_ had. He really was with them until the very end… 

… But, maybe… 

Mario gazed down at his young friend, still staring intensely at the picture. With a gentle hand, he guided Olivia to look at him. Once sure that the girl was paying attention, he shook his head in a firm “no” to her earlier statement.

Olivia stared at him with a woefully confused expression. “...W-What? What do you mean?”

Mario placed his hand on her shoulder. He wasn’t usually a man of many words, preferring action over speech, but he wanted her to understand his thoughts here. Swallowing the dryness that had settled into his throat, Mario took in a long breath. The words trickled out of his mouth slowly, carefully. 

“He-a promised to be by our side to the very end. Even though he isn’t with us in the pulp, he’s still here.”

The origami girl blinked, seemingly surprised by his uncharacteristically long sentence. Then, she shook off her momentary shock and looked at the ground, brow furrowing. “I don’t think I understand… How is he here? Is he a ghost? Why can’t we see him?” 

Mario pondered this too, trying to find a response to questions that living people can’t truly know the answers to. The plumber shrugged a bit helplessly. “... Some things don’t make complete-a sense, defying logic,” he admitted. “Spirits are one of those things.”

“But… Huh?” Olivia sputtered.

Mario was slightly surprised by how fast his next words came to him, though he supposed that he really shouldn’t have been. The red clad hero felt his lips curl up just a hint. “He did make a promise.” Mario tapped the back of a fist over where Olivia’s heart was. “And bonds of friendship are also one of those-a logic defying things,” he added on.

Olivia placed a hand over her heart as well, a distant look in her eye. After some thought, she refocused her gaze on him, cracking a tiny wry smile. “Heh. I-I guess I still have a lot to learn about the world.”

Just as the light had at long last returned to her face, a gloomy expression replaced it when she turned to look at the photo once more. “... But even knowing he’s not entirely gone… I still miss him…” she lamented.

Mario stepped closer to Olivia and wrapped an arm around her, pulling the girl into a side hug. She glanced up at the gesture, and he gave her a somber, sympathetic nod in understanding and agreement. Several emotions that Mario couldn’t quite place flitted through her eyes, but he did catch some surprise and varying amounts of sadness. After a moment, Olivia seemingly settled on a small pained smile, probably mirroring the look he had on his own face: the expression of two people who understood each other’s grief.

Mario looked back up at the photos, and Olivia settled into the hug and followed his gaze. The two adventurers stared at the ghostly apparition of their friend in each picture, a silent guardian standing at their side. As he processed the images further, Mario thought the implications were actually pretty sweet. Maybe bittersweet, but sweet nonetheless; even after his own game was over, Bobby never truly left them.

He and Olivia stood silently for an indeterminable amount of time: seconds, minutes, they all felt the same. Mario rubbed Olivia’s back comfortingly, still hugging her from the side but lightly enough that she could pull away once she was ready.

Finally, Olivia heaved a shaky breath. She drifted away from his embrace to scrub at her eyes before looking back at the photo wall. Another somber smile tugged at her lips as the young girl gazed at their dear friend’s image. “...Well, it is nice to know that in some way, he’s still right here with us.”

Mario nodded, smiling supportively. Olivia turned around, inspecting the room as if half expecting to see the ghostly bob-omb looking back. She closed her eyes, murmuring reverently. “Bobby, if you can hear me, I just want to say…Thank you, for saving my life, and being such an amazing friend. I hope you have been able to find peace.”

Respectfully, Mario took off his cap and bowed his head down slightly, giving one final salute to the loyal bob-omb as well. After a moment, he replaced his hat and looked back up at Olivia. She also opened her eyes and met his gaze, smiling lightly. “And thank you too, Mario. You’ve been so patient with getting me out of my funks.”

Mario waved a hand, assuring that it was no problem. Realizing that the two of them were done with their personal moment, the toad employee walked back over. “Hey, are you two okay?” He asked worriedly.

“...Yeah, we’re okay,” Olivia replied, a bittersweet smile adorning her face. “The photos are really nice, mister. Thank you very much!”

The toad smiled back, glad to see the girl in better spirits. “No problem, miss. Come back anytime!”

Shooting one last look at the photos, Mario and Olivia turned and exited the building. As the rays of sun hit their faces, the two took a moment to soak in the natural warmth and the sound of rustling leaves.

Olivia snapped out of her trance first, shaking herself out before giving Mario a determined look. “Okay, Mario. Let’s go get that yellow streamer!”

The red clad hero nodded back, equally ready. Once Olivia settled herself in his pocket again, he dashed off towards the studio exit, heading for the warp pipe.

  
And somewhere, somehow, distant yet so very close, Mario felt a familiar presence smiling happily at them.

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact: I was actually torn on whether I should let Mario talk or not. I had two drafts originally: one with a good chunk of Mario dialogue and one without any Mario dialogue to better fit the completely silent protagonist he is in the Paper Mario series. As you could probably tell, I went somewhere in between with Mario only really saying a few sentences where it counts. It just felt too weird for Mario to stand by silently as his friend questions the fabric of reality.
> 
> Thanks for reading! What did you think? Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments! Every kudos and comment is greatly appreciated!


End file.
